


an ember under kindling

by magnusbbanes



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Hurt/Comfort, M/M, does this qualify as such i have no idea
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-10
Updated: 2016-05-10
Packaged: 2018-06-07 16:02:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,338
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6812401
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/magnusbbanes/pseuds/magnusbbanes
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>You don’t get to kidnap Alec Lightwood’s boyfriend and live to tell the tale.</p>
            </blockquote>





	an ember under kindling

**Author's Note:**

> I was prompted by a lovely person on tumblr to write something along the lines of "Magnus gets tortured and Alec comes in to save him". I hope you enjoy!

Alec is leading the group into one of the Circle’s hideout. His bow is at the ready, but he knows they won’t be fighting anyone before they get wherever the main room is. He’s still trying to understand how in the hell Circle members managed to capture Magnus, but that’s something he’ll ask the warlock once they get him back. Because  _ they are _ getting him back. You don’t get to kidnap Alec Lightwood’s boyfriend and live to tell the tale.

The place is rather dark, except for a few dim lights here and there that don’t let them see far enough in front of them. They could be attacked at each turn, and they wouldn’t be able to anticipate it. But Alec doesn’t really care. There’s a quiet rage burning inside of him, like ember under kindling, and the moment he’ll see Magnus and the bastards that took him away, it’ll come out in a fiery storm. Getting a few cuts and bruises along the way doesn’t scare him. In fact, it’d be like gasoline.

He knows they’re getting close, because he can hear faint noises of pain coming from a room nearby. But the noises aren’t all; a voice is shouting, angry, and if he concentrates hard enough, Alec is sure he can hear the sound of a fist hitting flesh. He fastens his pace, but Jace takes a hold of his arm.

“Alec, slow down,” he whispers, his grip tight on Alec’s bicep. “We need to make this as stealthy as possible. We don’t know how many of them there are.”

Alec bats away Jace’s hand.

“I don’t  _ care _ about stealth. Magnus is in there.”

Jace groans his disapproval. Alec can barely believe the way he’s acting himself. Usually, he plans things out, finds secure ways to deal with whatever situation they find themselves in. Going in headfirst into a fight is Jace’s thing, not his. But this time, it’s different. This time, being reckless doesn’t seem like such a bad idea.

He goes along the wall that seems to be leading to where the noises are coming from. Each step makes what’s being said a little clearer.

“... you know where it is… can’t hide it forever… you better talk or… worse things could happen…”

Alec hears Magnus’ familiar chuckle. 

“... threats don’t intimidate me… can do this forever…”

Another hit comes, then a loud cry of anguish. As if on cue, Jace puts his hand on Alec’s shoulder and doesn’t let go, digging his fingers into the leather of Alec’s jacket. Alec shrugs it off.

“Alec,” Izzy says firmly behind him.

He closes his eyes, and tries to focus. Of course, that’s when Magnus lets out another cry.

“Fuck this,” Alec says.

He kicks in the door to the room, immediately aims toward one of the Circle members and shoots him right in between the eyes. Another one comes for him from the right, much closer, so he grabs at one of his arrows and plunges it deep inside his throat. He knows the others have joined the fight as well, but his vision is a blur, the wrath inside of him finally coming out. He’s got just the time to put his bow away and grab at his blade when another man of the Circle slashes at him. He parries it with ease, ducks, spins around, holding his weapon out. The blade cuts the man from shoulder to waist, blood splattering across Alec’s face.

The fight is over faster than he realizes. Alec loses no time to look to Magnus’ direction. The warlock is lying on what looks like an autopsy table, his hands and feet strapped with leather, and his entire body surrounded by a strange, slightly glimmering force field. Alec rushes over, but doesn’t get his hands anywhere near Magnus; the force field might be dangerous to anyone not in control of it. He can see wounds and bruises all over Magnus’ torso, and both his bottom lip and the top of his left cheek are cut open slightly. He’s got one black eye.

“Magnus…,” Alec starts, his voice breaking inside his throat.

“I’m okay,” Magnus says, despite his tone being slightly croaky. “One of the guards has a bracelet on. It deactivates the force field.”

Alec turns around to see Jace, Izzy and Clary frantically looking over the bodies of the Circle members. Clary ends up being the one who finds the bracelet; she rushes over to Alec and hands it to him, worry evident on her face. Alec deactivates the force field with one push of the glowing button that adorns it.

When the glowing film surrounding Magnus’ body disappears, he makes a noise like the air’s just been pushed back into his lungs, as if he’d been brought back to life. Alec takes him in his arms instantly, bringing him into a sitting position. Magnus’ breathing is ragged, his chest rising and falling rapidly against Alec’s torso.

“You’re good now. You’re good. I have you,” Alec whispers, his own body relaxing all at once.

“We need to get out of here,” Jace’s voice comes from behind him.

Alec slides an arm under Magnus’ knees, the other behind his shoulders, and lifts him up, carrying him out of the room, his heart racing inside his chest with Magnus’ limbs trembling under his hands.

 

**

 

“Stop moving,” Alec hisses.

“I can take care of this, Alexander.”

Magnus tries to reach for his injured shoulder, but winces in pain. He lets his arm fall back to his side.

“You obviously can’t. You’re exhausted, you have no magic left in you right now. Let me do this.”

The warlock relaxes under Alec’s touch, who is applying healing salves and gauze to the cuts on his body. Once he’s done, he goes and gets an ice pack to put against Magnus’ black eye.

“Thank you,” Magnus says, his voice soft and broken from exhaustion.

Alec shrugs. The mix of relief and worry inside of him doesn’t let him talk. Magnus stares right at him, his face a mess of tiny bruises and eyeliner streaks. Alec hates the thought that Magnus was in enough pain to cry.

“Are you mad at me?,” Magnus asks.

Alec is so surprised that he can’t help but take away the ice pack from the warlock’s face.

“What?”

“Are you mad at me?,” the warlock repeats.

He sounds like a defenseless, scared child. Carefully, Alec brings one hand to Magnus’ cheek, rubs at his skin gently with his thumb, and goes in for a chaste, short kiss.

“The people I’m mad at for this are dead,” he says, his voice a lot deeper than he’d anticipated. “I killed them.”

Magnus swallows, hard, seemingly unable to tear his gaze away from Alec.

“What they did to you,” Alec continues, and he can feel his rage bubbling back up inside of him, “how they captured you, the way they tortured you… You couldn’t do anything about it. You hear?”

Magnus looks down, then back up, and nods slowly, as if he has to convince himself that what Alec is saying is true.

“You being unable to die,” Alec says, and something stirs in his chest, “doesn’t mean I will ever let someone hurt you like this again.”

Alec is staring deep into Magnus’ eyes, trying to see if the words are making their mark into his brain, if any of what he is saying is registering in his tired mind.

“I would rain fire,” he continues, and for some reason, his voice has come to a whisper, “on  _ anyone _ that tries to make you suffer.”

He grabs the back of Magnus’ neck and pulls him toward his chest.

“Anyone who comes for you… will have me coming for them.”

Alec feels Magnus taking in a deep breath against him, then exhaling, slowly, then all at once. They hold each other for a long time, needing to feel the other’s presence, needing to ground themselves back into the safe haven that is each other’s arms. 


End file.
